18 million passengers used Stansted Airport in the past year

A seven per cent boost in passengers using Stansted Airport is a sign of continuing growth at the base, bosses claim.

Nearly 1.18 million people passed through the Essex airport last month, according to figures released on Friday.

A total of 18 million passengers used Stansted in the first year under the ownership of the Manchester Airports Group (MAG).

Stansted managing director Andrew Harrison said: “This underlines just how much Stansted has changed for the better in MAG's ownership, and reflects the strong confidence of our airlines as they grow the number of services offered from the airport.”

A single runway at Stansted could handle as many as 45 million passengers per year.